MRO distributor MSC Industrial Supply Co., Melville, N.Y., has launched its new ControlPoint inventory management solution, which combines MSC’s existing suite of software, hardware and service expertise into a unified inventory management portfolio that allows customers to leverage technology to achieve greater visibility and control over their MRO spending, with the goal of improved productivity and profitability across the supply chains, according to the company.

"Effective inventory management plays a critical role in a company's business strategy and—if done well—can offer a significant competitive advantage," said MSC Inventory Management Director Bill Welch. "Serving as a strategic partner to manufacturers and other customers, we offer a strategic combination of inventory management solutions and industry expertise to help them navigate complex supply chain issues. We are continuously looking for ways to bring greater value to our customers, which is why we've packaged our inventory management solutions under one brand which will allow us to choose the right solution for each unique circumstance, and help make these services more accessible to all of our customers."

In complex manufacturing and service environments, many companies do not know the extent of the MRO inventory they possess, where it is physically located in their operations and how best to use it. Statistics show that companies across the U.S. spend an estimated $140 billion on MRO inventory, and almost 70 percent of that will go unused over the course of a year, according to MSC.

ControlPoint solutions include the following services:

Industrial vending, a full collection of next-generation, configurable vending equipment that leverages software to control supplies and report a customer's inventory management spend, 24/7;

Vendor-managed inventory (VMI), an MSC-managed service in which a specialist monitors inventory to effectively and efficiently manage customer replenishment orders on behalf of a customer;